Daily roundup

It is 9:30 a.m. and my day is already looking pretty full. Here is a quick roundup of some interesting stories from around the Web.

Loudeye Corp., the struggling Seattle digital media company, has sold its U.S. operations for $11 million in cash to New York-based Muze Corp. The acquisition includes Loudeye’s digital music, encoding and music sound sample services. “This transaction is a continuation of our restructuring efforts to streamline operations, align technology platforms and significantly reduce our cost structure. The cash infusion from the deal also strengthens our balance sheet,” said Loudeye Chief Executive Mike Brochu in the press release. Muze says they will continue to operate a Seattle office, but I am not sure what this means for Loudeye’s Seattle presence.

UPDATE: I just heard back from a Loudeye spokeswoman who tells me that the company will continue to be based in Seattle, though only five to 10 people will be in the corporate offices. Loudeye’s European headquarters will be in Bristol, United Kingdom, with total global employment at 120 people. About 40 employees from Loudeye will be moving to Muze, which is negotiating a sublease for Loudeye’s building at 1130 Rainier Avenue South. No layoffs are planned as a result of this transaction, the spokeswoman said.

Pluggd founder Alex Castro talks about the search marketing session at Seattle Mind Camp, the geek slumber party that was held this past weekend, and Dustin Luther of Rain City Real Estate Guide provides an overview of the all night event.

Venture capital funds posted a negative 6.8 percent for the five-year period ended in the fourth quarter, signaling that many firms still have not made a recovery from the dot com bust. According to a report today from Thomson Financial and the National Venture Capital Association, 10 year returns for venture capital firms were 23.7 percent. The report says that only 17 venture-backed companies went public in the fourth quarter, with NVCA president Mark Heesen saying that “we are keeping our eyes firmly on the venture-backed exit markets in hopes that we will start to see a healthier IPO market in 2006.”

Venture capitalist Paul Kedrosky and Private Equity Week discuss whether Intel Capital — the long running venture capital arm of the semiconductor giant — could get the ax in the company’s upcoming restructuring. If that comes to pass, it could have an impact on a number of Seattle area companies that have taken money from Intel Capital: Clearwire, Dexterra, Lockdown Networks, Melodeo, Pure Networks, Speakeasy and Wireless Services Corp.

Daily roundup

It is 9:30 a.m. and my day is already looking pretty full. Here is a quick roundup of some interesting stories from around the Web.

Loudeye Corp., the struggling Seattle digital media company, has sold its U.S. operations for $11 million in cash to New York-based Muze Corp. The acquisition includes Loudeye’s digital music, encoding and music sound sample services. “This transaction is a continuation of our restructuring efforts to streamline operations, align technology platforms and significantly reduce our cost structure. The cash infusion from the deal also strengthens our balance sheet,” said Loudeye Chief Executive Mike Brochu in the press release. Muze says they will continue to operate a Seattle office, but I am not sure what this means for Loudeye’s Seattle presence.

UPDATE: I just heard back from a Loudeye spokeswoman who tells me that the company will continue to be based in Seattle, though only five to 10 people will be in the corporate offices. Loudeye’s European headquarters will be in Bristol, United Kingdom, with total global employment at 120 people. About 40 employees from Loudeye will be moving to Muze, which is negotiating a sublease for Loudeye’s building at 1130 Rainier Avenue South. No layoffs are planned as a result of this transaction, the spokeswoman said.

Pluggd founder Alex Castro talks about the search marketing session at Seattle Mind Camp, the geek slumber party that was held this past weekend, and Dustin Luther of Rain City Real Estate Guide provides an overview of the all night event.

Venture capital funds posted a negative 6.8 percent for the five-year period ended in the fourth quarter, signaling that many firms still have not made a recovery from the dot com bust. According to a report today from Thomson Financial and the National Venture Capital Association, 10 year returns for venture capital firms were 23.7 percent. The report says that only 17 venture-backed companies went public in the fourth quarter, with NVCA president Mark Heesen saying that “we are keeping our eyes firmly on the venture-backed exit markets in hopes that we will start to see a healthier IPO market in 2006.”

Venture capitalist Paul Kedrosky and Private Equity Week discuss whether Intel Capital — the long running venture capital arm of the semiconductor giant — could get the ax in the company’s upcoming restructuring. If that comes to pass, it could have an impact on a number of Seattle area companies that have taken money from Intel Capital: Clearwire, Dexterra, Lockdown Networks, Melodeo, Pure Networks, Speakeasy and Wireless Services Corp.